In-Situ Trans-esterification of Cottonseeds Oil (Gossypium Spp) Using CaO Derived from Egg Shell as Catalyst

In-situ trans-esterification of cottonseed oil (Gossypium spp) was carried out with 5g calcium oxide derived from egg shell as catalyst using soxhlet extraction apparatus and 1:1 of n-hexane to methanol. All the trans-esterification reactions were carried out at 600C temperature for 2 hours. The results produced a biodiesel with 35.75% yield, water and sediment content 0.08%, density 0.85g/cm3, specific gravity 0.85, saponification value 16.83mgKOH/g, acid value 0.79mgKOH/g, iodine value 59.22I2/100g, cetane number 357.28, and high heating value 47.85MJ/kg. The GC/MS results indicated the presence of tetradecanoic acid, methyl ester, hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester, 11-octadecenoic acid, methyl ester, 6- octadecenoic acid, (z)-methyl ester, octadecanoic acid, methyl ester, n-hexadecanoic acid, oleic acid and 2-ethyl-2- hexanal. Thus, the processing of cottonseed oil into methyl ester using soxhlet extraction method is recommended as it required low energy input as compare to conventional method.